Ha HA! I got it down before Sunday, because I rock! And I'm also finished my exams, so when I'm not studying on how to not run over people, I'll probably be writing. This story will have 2 or 3 more long chapters, this being the most gentle of them, and this one is rated a solid M for language (I actually say the F-shot you guys! SQUEEEE!), and violence among other stuff. And I'm sorry to say that this is a bit S/K too! I know I know (breaks down and cries) I didn't want to do it, it just sort of happened! But I can guarantee you that NOTHING SERIOUS will happen between them, just dirty little whispers here and there. But seriously watch out because this chapter will knock you straight on your ass!
Ethan: Jo' ass!
I'd also like to thank CrAzYhOrSeGiRl88 for helping me with a few things (You know what and I don't wanna mention them because if I do it'll ruin the chapter)
Ethan: Wink Wink
and CrAzYhOrSeGiRl88's words this round were
Acidic
Blazing
Crazed
Remorse
Over-Protective
Hero
Flinch
Caress
Longing
Coarse (I used it twice!)
Aglow
Loathing
Repulsion
Penance
Adoration
She uses her brains to pick some pretty Fawesome words and I use my creativity to mash 'em into the mix.

The Fallen Angels


"Will you persist,
even after I kiss you,
goodbye for the last time,
will you keep on trying,
to prove it?
I'm dying,
To lose it,
I'm losing my confidence"
'Coin-Operated Boy' by The Dresden Dolls

The damp dirt pinched between her bare toes as she walked towards the beach. Her body shook from many things, what had just happened with Jack, mixed with the cold and the exhaustion she was now facing was not a good concoction.

She breathed heavily and raggedly as she wrapped the blanket tighter around her back, the blood seeping through was flooding her top and even the blanket. When the cool hurricane winds howled, it chilled her to the bone.

The wounds needed tending too, even she could tell that, but no one was awake on the beach any longer, and she didn't want to explain were the marks had come from. In a normal situation, she would've turned to Jack; he would've fixed her wounds and gone off to fight whatever demon had harmed her. But this wasn't a normal situation, and he wasn't her Jack.

Silently walking as if on air, she gradually made her way to her tent, but before entering it, she saw a fire still burning outside someone's tent, signaling that whoever owned that shelter was still awake.

"Sawyer," she huffed deeply, he was strictly the last person she'd want to see in her condition, but she was hardly in a situation where she could complain.

As she walked the few feet to his tent her mind contemplated her decision over a hundred times. She paused momentarily at the opening, gazing inside. Sawyer lay asleep with the book he was reading sprawled across his chest, his arm lay over his head and in the corner a battery powered lantern sat illuminating the small tent.

She spread the tarp and walked inside, squeezing herself into one of the dark corners and stared at his sleeping form for a moment, "Sawyer," she whispered gently, her voice hoarse. She cleared it and waited for him to wake, but he didn't.

"Sawyer," she replied a little harsher, shaking his shoulder. He almost jumped from his spot, "Jesus Freckles," he mumbled angrily, "What the hell are you doing?"

"I need your help," she whispered, her face hidden in the shadows of his tent, "But you can't tell anyone," she added.

"Why, what'd ya do now Freckles? Kill Jack and need me to help get rid of the evidence?" He chuckled as he leaned his back against one of the airplane's chairs.

"Sawyer," her voice was shaky. She swallowed and tried to keep an indifferent appearance, "I'm serious."

He sighed with annoyance, "I warned you not to go out there," he reminded, "But you had to be the big heroine, and now that everything's fallen to crap you want me to…"

"Yes or no, Sawyer?" she grumbled as she slid down into a sitting position, her body still covered by the shadows. All except her one foot that skated into the light, Sawyer glanced at it, then at her, and she retracted her foot quickly.

"What do you need?" he questioned as he got up, ready to dig through his piles for whatever she required.

"Do you promise not to tell anyone!" she implored sternly.

"Yeah I get it Freckles, it's a secret," he enlightened as he stuck out his hand to help her up, "So what do you need."

She hesitated at grabbing it, "I have to warn you," she whispered, "I don't look to good right now."

Sawyer sighed once again, "I don't give a damn Freckles, now are you gonna to tell me what you need or am I gonna to have to become a mind reader?"

"I need any medical supplies you have," she told him, "Peroxide, bandages, gauze, aspirin, anything."

"I thought Jacko had all that stuff," he stated as he crouched before her.

"He does, but he left, and I don't want to find him," Kate answered as she took his hand.

Sawyer pulled her up and into the light. She winced and Sawyer froze when he saw her state, "Jesus, what the hell happened?" he questioned as he eyed the multiple scratches down her arms, and her swollen lips.

"I fell down a hill," she replied stoically as he guided her to where he kept his medical supplies, "My back is the worst, I think it's still bleeding."

He took off the blanket to find her shirt soaked thoroughly with blood, "Must've been some hill," he murmured as she lifted the back of her top up to her shoulders, wincing in pain, "This is going to hurt," he told her as he took one of his shirts and ripped it into rags, soaking one with peroxide.

"I'm used to it," Kate muttered as she leaned forward lightly resting her chest against her battered legs. She winced when the chemical came into contact with her frayed skin, but marveled at how placid Sawyer could be when he wasn't slinging acidic remarks left and right.

His fingers fumbled through the rolls of bandages he'd hoarded, and he began to wrap up the areas that still slightly bled on her back. That's when he noticed an abstruse mark on her side, though it looked almost familiar. He turned to a different angle, which was when he saw the fully extent of the mark, and his fists closed hard.

"Freckles," he sighed angrily as he finished the last patch on her back.

"I know," she whispered, "I need to be more careful."

"No, hill did this," he divulged as he brought her shirt back down. She turned around and met his blazing eyes, "Yeah it did, I…"

"You can't get bite marks from a Goddamn hill Kate," he growled, his teeth grinding together. Kate bowed her head, not daring to say anything, "Did you sleep with him?" He questioned, his voice low, "Did you sleep with him!" he demanded.

"He said he loved me Sawyer," she stated, "And I believed him, I believe he actually did" Sawyer stared at her infuriated as he paced back and forth before her, "But it wasn't him. It wasn't Jack," she whispered, "Jack wouldn't have done what he did to me," tears were now forming in her eyes.

"Where's he now?" Sawyer asked as he stopped moving and kept his eyes on Kate who was staring into nothingness.

"He ran out into the jungle when he was done with me," she answered mindlessly, Sawyer was beginning to worry about her state of mind, but she seemed to snap out of her mood abruptly. She reached for the clothe he was using and lifted up the front of her shirt a few inches, bearing some recent injuries and began to clean them.

"Kate," Sawyer bent down before her. The fact that he was using her name bringing certain seriousness to the situation, "Did he rape you?"

She looked up at him with a swift eye movement, but then focused once again on cleaning her wounds, "There was barely any sex, it was just," she sighed, "It was just pain."

"Was it voluntary?" he asked again, wanting to know the extent of Jack's wrong doings.

"Yeah," she answered as she pulled her top back down.

"Jesus Kate, what were you thinking?" he asked in an outburst towards her. She flinched, closing her eyes tightly and brought her arms up, protecting her from his phantom attack.

"Freckles," he sighed as he sat down before her, "I'm not like him," he told her as he coaxed her arms away from their defensive position.

"But you will be," she informed as she sniffled, wiping at the unshed tears that were stinging her eyes.

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" he queried, with a small hint of worry in his voice. Kate again used silence to reply.

Sawyer leaned backwards as he rummaged through the mound of accumulated items, until he found what he was looking for. He turned around and threw a large blue shirt over to Kate, "You might wanna change outta that," he suggested, pointing to her top. She sent him a glare, "I'm just thinking about what people are gonna say, when they see your condition in the morning," he added.

"I should go," she stated as she picked up the bloodied blanket and the shirt Sawyer had tossed her.

"Is he gonna come back?" Sawyer asked her before she got to the opening of the tent.

"I don't know," she answered quietly, "But if he does, it won't be tonight," she assured as she lifted the loose tarp but stopped, "Hey Sawyer?" she questioned.

"What is it now Freckles?" he sighed as he threw his hands up in the air, "You're just never satisfied are ya?"

"Thanks for helping me," she continued, smiling weakly but gratefully, choosing to ignore his angry eruption.

"Well you were the one who dealt with Jacko in the first place," Sawyer reminded as he lay back down on his makeshift bed, referring to a few nights ago when she had broken up the fight between Jack and himself. It was his way of saying thank you.

Kate pushed a matted clump of her hair behind her ear, "Don't worry about it," she replied as she left to return to her own tent.

"That ain't what I'm worried about," Sawyer mumbled before he fell asleep.

Sawyer groaned as he stretched out his arms, and cracked his neck. The sun had been up for a few hours, meaning he'd slept in longer then he planned, and it was all Freckles' fault. He sat up, stretching his arms again, this time upwards.

He stopped his movements abruptly when he heard people holding a conversation only a few feet from his tent. He grinned cheekily; he loved it when he didn't even have to leave his tent for the daily rumors. He stealthy moved forward the few inches, until his azure eyes scanned the beach, and found Charlie, Claire, and Sayid talking.

"Locke said that Jack was gone in the morning," Charlie announced to Sayid, "He says he slept soundly through the night and doesn't know if Kate made it up there or not."

"Well she's here," Claire stated, balancing her newborn son and gesturing towards Kate's shelter, "Just go wake her up."

"Well that would be unfair," Charlie immediately replied, "She didn't wake us up when she got back from the caves."

"Speak for yourself, reject," Sawyer grumbled as he exited the tent, pretending like he'd heard none of the conversation, "Well, well, well, looks like the PTA was having a meetin' and I wasn't invited."

"Sawyer have you seen Jack at all since last night?" Sayid questioned.

"Well, he's not hidin' in the back of my tent if that's whatcha mean," Sawyer replied with a snide smile as he stuck a cigarette into his mouth and began to light it, "'Sides, I thought Jacko flew over the cuckoo's nest," he informed as he took a drag of the cigarette.

"He did, but he came back," Sayid explained as he glared at Sawyer knowing the man wasn't telling the whole truth. He broke he contact and looked over to Shannon who was still in the same spot, the tide completely covering her feet, "Well I suppose we won't know what happens until Kate wakes up," he stated as he gave a sturdy nod and walked away.

Charlie and Claire turned away from Sawyer, beginning to walk back to where they had set up twin shelters beside each other. He sighed as he watched Sayid trying to get Shannon to move up only a few feet so he wouldn't have to be worried about her drowning, but she showed no intention to.

He dropped his cigarette into the sand and stopped it out with his shoe before traveling to Kate's tent. He stopped before entering, looking around inconspicuously, making sure no one noticed him, and to his luck, everyone seemed to be busy.

His shoes slid across the grainy sand noiselessly as he entered. Gazing upon her sleeping form, she was laid curled on her side in the blue shirt he'd lent her for the night, her lips bruised and swollen along with all her other wounds.

"Freckles," he told her as he reached out, gripping his warm hand around her cool ankle and gently shook her leg to rouse her, "Rise and shine Freckles," he whispered loudly.

She jerked her leg away from him and sat up speedily, he could see her chest rising and falling with a quick pace and it became obvious to him that he'd scared her. A small smirk spread across his face, "Never do that again," she told him as she began to place her hair up in a ponytail.

Sawyer chuckled, "I just thought that you might wanna know that the island police have begun their investigation of good old Jacko, and want as much information on him as possible."

Kate sighed as she stood up. She rummaged through her pile of clothes until she came to a loose fitting pair of cargo pants. She looked at them, and then up to Sawyer who stared back at her, "Jesus Freckles, I saw more then that yesterday," he huffed angrily as he turned around to face the walls of the shelter.

He heard Kate sigh, not knowing if it was from what he said, or if the pants were irritating her wounds as she slid them on, "What are you gonna tell them?" he asked, his eyes scanning the shades of blue on the tarp, trying to keep himself from looking behind him.

"I'm going to tell them, that Jack was already gone when I got there," she grunted as she pulled her shirt over her head and replaced it with more passable t-shirt, "You can turn around now," she informed.

"How the hell are you gonna pass that off?" Sawyer asked as she picked her shed clothes off the ground, "You look like someone dragged you around town tied to the bumper of their pickup truck," he stated honestly.

"I'll just tell them I fell down the hill," she stated quickly as she handed him back the blue shirt he'd lent her.

"And the bite marks?" he questioned with a raised eyebrow.

Kate motioned to tuck a phantom piece of hair behind her ear, but her hand fell when she remembered that she had tied it up, "They're not going to see the marks, if I wear clothes that cover my stomach and pants that cover my legs, I'll be fine."

"Darlin' they're gonna know that…" Sawyer was cut off by the sudden rush of people passing Kate's tent, and the sounds of ferocious barking in the distance, "What the hell is goin' on out there?" Sawyer asked as he brushed through the opening followed by Kate.

"Vincent," Walt begged as he yanked on the leash as the growling golden lab bared its sharp teeth that gleamed in the sunlight, slobber dripping over his gums. His back was straight along with his tail as he barked at the boy.

"Walt, get away from him man, he's not himself today," Michael told his son, "Just let him go man, he'll come back."

"No, something's wrong with him dad," Walt told as he kept yanking the leash pulling the dog away. Vincent hooked his paws into the mushy, watery sand in the surf and began to snarl lowly. With one final yank of the leash, his collar broke and the rabid dog took off towards the groups of people huddled together on the beach.

"Claire," Charlie yelled, "Get inside," he told her as he pushed her and Aaron inside the shelter, placing a shred of metal from the plane against the opening.

Vincent tore across the beach; he was definitely running for something, but no one could see what. "He's coming this way, Freckles," Sawyer announced, "Get back inside."

"I can take care of myself Sawyer," she stated defiantly as she moved to stand next to him.

"Darlin' I ain't getting into your biting fetish right now, I'm tellin' you to get back in the tent," he explained to her. She rolled her eyes, but as they heard the screaming of the other survivors running away from Vincent, she stood idle for a moment, watching the yellow dog tear up the beach.

As he barreled closer to them, to being only a few feet away, Sawyer shot out his hand, gripping Kate's arm strongly and forced her behind him, "If you're gonna stay out, at least be a lil' less conspicuous about it."

Kate shot him a stubborn glace, but stayed put between Sawyer and her shelter. They watched as Vincent ran by aiming for something down the beach. Walt was now on his tail, followed by Michael.

"What the hell does he want down there?" Sawyer questioned as he leaned his head around Kate's tent to peer down the beach.

"Oh my God!" Kate yelled as she pushed herself up off the ground and began to follow Michael, "He wants Shannon!"

"Freckles!" he yelled as he got up and followed her down the beach.

She and Sawyer stopped along the jungle line few yards away. Kate's heart stopped when she saw the dog jumping through the air towards Shannon, but Sayid ran in at the last possible second with a large branch from a tree and hit the dog across the face.

Vincent yipped, but then began to snarl more fiercely, he moved to jump for her again, but Sayid hit him again. This time across the midsection. He fell to the ground limply and lied lifelessly in the sand.

Sayid threw the branch away and bent down beside Shannon, he kissed her blonde hair and wrapped his arms around her, relieved that she was okay. She hadn't moved from her spot, not once, not even to look over at the feral animal that was about to mull her to death.

He slid an arm around her back, and one under her knees and began to carry her away. When Walt stopped him, "What'd you do to my dog!" he yelled incensed, tears in his eyes, "He was just having a bad day!"

"Walt," Michael told his boy as he fell to his knees beside his dog, "He was sick, he must've gotten rabies from one of the other animals here," he explained as he placed a hand on Walt's shoulder.

Sayid turned around, Shannon leaning against his chest and gave a remorseful glance to Walt, whose head lay against his dog's torso. And Kate moved back towards Sawyer, bumping into him, "It's over," he told her gently as they watched the boy weep.

"No," she whispered as shook her head, "he needs to get out of there," she announced and ran over to call Walt away but as she did Vincent woke.

In one swift movement his head jerked around and his jaw clamped around Walt's neck. Walt began to scream out in sheer pain, his calls gurgled by the blood rising in his throat and spilling out into the cream colored sand.

Michael's eyes grew wide as he began to try and pry the dog's jaw away from his son, hitting, punching, kicking, but it only seemed to make Vincent's teeth sink in deeper. Sayid placed Shannon on the ground and grabbed the thick branch he'd used before. He hit the animal repeatedly, and when Vincent finally released Walt, it was because he'd stopped breathing.

In pure rage Michael grabbed the limb from Sayid and struck the dog a final time across the face, toppling its dead body over into the crimson blood that stained the sand. Michael grabbed Walt's body and cradled it to his chest as tears began to stream down his face. Sayid's eyes were filled with sorrow as he watched Michael cry over his lost child. Shannon simply sat in her spot where she had been placed and stared mindlessly out into the ocean, not acknowledging the death taking place only a few feet away from her, or the blood that was splattered on her supermodel legs.

Kate's breaths increased as she watched from a couple feet away. A tear broke loose from her eye as she stared at the lifeless body of ten-year-old Walt. The sticky, bloody sand pasted around his body. She could smell his blood, even over the ocean air.

Suddenly the copper smell of blood was replaced by the distasteful smell of a cigarette and she felt a warm hand on her shoulder and a hoarse voice whisper, "Kate." She wouldn't look at him; she couldn't pull her eyes away from the gory scene before her.

Sawyer walked around and stood in front of her, "You don't need to see that anymore," he declared as he threw his cigarette to the ground.

"As its teeth sink in, we realize, we're not going home," she mumbled as she stared at the ground.

Sawyer stared at her, "What the hell did you just say?" he demanded. Kate looked up to him with clouded eyes and pursed lips, not finding the answer he needed to hear.

Sayid, Locke and Michael buried Walt almost immediately after his speedy death. Everyone except for Jack attended his funeral, Shannon even left her mark on the beach, her legs wobbly from ill-usage, but Sayid kept her up straight.

Everyone was very solemn, no lighthearted comments were made by Hurley or Sawyer, and no one said a word that wasn't a grievance or a prayer. Everyone was finally realizing that their innocence was gone, Walt, the youngest member other then Aaron, was dead.

"Where was Jack in all this?" Michael spoke harshly, breaking the silence at the newly dug and covered grave, "Where is he?"

No one said a word, figuring that Michael was letting his grievance out, "Where the hell is he!" he yelled, as he stood from beside the grave, his tears drying in his eyes and his grave face turning to portray rage.

"Michael, maybe you should go for a walk," Locke suggested as he approached the heartbroken father, laying a reassuring hand on his shoulder.

"I don't wanna go for a walk, man. I want to find Jack so he can tell me where he was when he could've saved my sons life!" he yelled as he jerked Locke's hand off.

"What exactly did you expect Jack to do?" Kate questioned. Everyone's eyes flew off of Michael and landed on her, "He couldn't have saved Walt and you know it."

"He should've been here, he could've stopped it from happening," Michael growled.

"Every time something goes wrong, you can't blame Jack. The truth is he didn't want to be in the leader seat, but all of you pushed him there, and now when he does a few wrong things, you think you can blame him for everything," she explained, "But in reality, it's all your own doing."

Michael's hands fell beside his body, one clenched in a fist, the other twitching as he swallowed harshly, "Where is he Kate?" he asked, his voice trying to hold onto it's gentility, but his body language was threatening. Sawyer watched him very carefully, he was only a few feet away from Kate, and if Mikey here tried something, here was ready for him.

"I don't know," announced, her eyes glued to his.

"Where is he?" Michael yelled with crazed eyes as he took a step forward. Locke stepped in Michael's path, while Sun took hold of Shannon and Sayid stepped beside Kate.

"Alright, fine!" Michael hollered, his voice echoing through the lifeless jungle, "If you won't tell me, I'll go find him myself!" he stated as he reached forward, grabbing the handle of a knife Locke had strapped around his waist.

"Michael," Locke's eyes got wide with surprise, "Put the knife down. I know you're feeling hurt and confused because this happened so fast, but this isn't how to settle it."

Michael turned his back and began to walk through the dense grouping of the luscious trees. "Let him go," Sayid suggested to Locke who was about to go in after him, "It's better for him to deal with his problem."

"What about Jack?" Locke reminded, "He's out there, unarmed, and not expecting an attack."

"I don't think we have to worry about Jack," Sayid began as he glanced towards Kate, "Something tells me he can take care of himself."

"It's not what you think," She stated grimly, "I went to go see him, but he wasn't there. I left to come back to the beach, but it was dark and I couldn't see where I was going, so I fell down a hill."

Sayid looked at her questioningly, along with Locke, who held a look of sorrow, she knew he could tell she was lying, but her eyes pleaded with his not to tell.

"Kate, it's very important that we get the whole story, if we're going to find a way to stop whatever it is that's happening to Jack, we need to be fully informed on what he can do, we need to know what we're up against," Sayid disclosed to her patiently, giving her a chance to reveal the sordid truth.

"That is the truth," she answered stubbornly.

"She's tellin' the truth," Sawyer spoke up, "I was the one who helped her back to camp," he divulged.

"I thought you hadn't seen Jack," Sayid questioned skeptically, as he drew a step closer to Sawyer.

"I never said I saw Jacko," he stated, "I saw Freckles here, tumble through the woods and her way down the hill like a damn Raggedy Ann Doll."

"And what exactly were you doing out in the jungle that late?" Sayid queried.

"I was takin' a leak, is that illegal now too?" Sawyer replied sassily.

"Okay," Sayid sighed, "I believe you," he told Kate, "But from now on, with Jack and Michael in the woods, we shouldn't be out here alone, or after dark."

The day had passed in a hurry, wanting to get as far away from the beach as it could. Who could blame it? A ten-year-old boy's blood still sat clotting on the fluffy sands.

Kate lay propped up against her suitcase inside her shelter. She couldn't lie down on her back, or her stomach, because the bruises were still swelling. Her eyes drifted open and closed, almost timed with the waves crashing on the shore. The only other sound that night was Aaron crying from someway down the beach.

Through the sliver sized opening in her tent, she watched the jungle very carefully. To everyone she was suddenly public enemy number one, with no one believing her except Sawyer.

"Dammit Freckles, you asleep again?" he questioned as he pushed his way into her tent. A jolt of alarm swept through her body, pulling her out of La La Land and into the harsh dankness of reality.

"I would be, if you would stop barging in here whenever you wanted," she grumbled angrily.

"Hell, you sleep more then I do Freckles, and I sleep a lot," he told her as he sat down beside her.

"Well I have an excuse," she expressed as she shifted her weight, wincing, "The swelling still hasn't stopped."

"And whose damn fault is that?" Sawyer questioned, not a shred of pity in his body.

Kate looked over to him with repulsion, "You think I wanted this to happen to me?" she questioned crossly.

"Of course not, but I know you ain't the innocent little girl you want everyone to think you are," he replied as he took out a cigarette and a lighter, "If you let it happen, then some part of you allowed it to."

"You're unbelievable," Kate scoffed as she pushed herself to get up but fell back into place.

"What happen, did I strike a nerve?" he asked with a snigger as he placed the cigarette and lighter away; better not to tick her off to a breaking point.

"Shut up," she told him suddenly, trying to listen to something she couldn't hear over her voice.

"What? Jack calling you back to the jungle for…" he started, but she leaned over and clamped a hand over his mouth. The coarse stubble that grew over his chin was itching her hand, "Just be quiet for a sec," she demanded.

Sawyer looked at her and grabbed her delicate wrist, removing her hand from his mouth. The only sounds of the night were the dull crashing of the waves and the piercing cry of Aaron.

"Do you hear that?" she questioned as she squirmed to get up.

"All I hear are the damn waves and Baby Huey screamin' his head off," Sawyer stated.

"That's it," she told him, "Aaron never cries for this long, something's wrong."

"What the hell are you talkin' about?" Sawyer questioned with a dubious glance her way.

"I was right about Walt and Vincent wasn't I?" she reminded, "Now help me up!" she demanded frantically.

"Okay, take it easy Freckles," he expressed as he got up, then reached down, grabbing Kate by her forearms, "I got ya," he told her as he helped her up carefully, but speedily. Her cool skin tingled the ends of his fingers, but as soon as she rose to her feet, she ran from the tent towards where Charlie and Claire were situated.

He moaned irately as he trailed her across the sand, if he didn't go with her, she'd probably end up getting hurt and then he'd end up getting blamed some how, even if it was only himself doing the finger pointing.

When he got there, he stood beside her idly, and watched as Charlie and Claire's savage argument progressed. Both screaming so loud that their faces were painted a light red in the moonlight. Neither seemed to notice that Aaron was crying, or that Sawyer and Kate were right beside them.

"Why isn't anyone doing anything?" Kate asked as she turned around to look for Sayid. She found him sitting next to Shannon on the beach as usual.

"If you don't shut that bloody bastard child up," Charlie threatened, "I swear to God he won't be the only one eating mashed up food!"

"Don't fucking tell me how to raise my bloody baby!" She yelled back as she threw a flashlight at Charlie, "You don't know anything about me!"

"I know that you're a horrible mother, you didn't even want the little bugger!" He reminded sadistically.

"I'll bloody shut him up!" Charlie grumbled as she walked towards the baby's crib. Kate's eyes got wide, "Claire! Claire I can take him for awhile if you want," Kate offered.

"You can bloody well have him," Claire told as she turned her back from her child and went back to arguing with Charlie.

"What the hell's gotten into to them?" Sawyer asked as he looked to the couple violently arguing and back to Kate.

"It's starting," she mumbled incoherently, as she stared down at the tiny baby boy who cried for his mother.

"What?" Sawyer questioned, "What's starting? What the hell are you talking about Freckles!" he yelled.

"I'll tell you later," she assured, "Just grab the cradle," she demanded as she reached in and pulled out the fussing newborn.

"Just leave the kid," Sawyer told her, "You don't know how to take care of a baby."

"Of course I don't" she hissed as she held Aaron to her chest, "But if I leave him here, his own mother will kill him."

Sawyer moaned and picked up the cradle Locke had made for Claire, "You'd better know what you're doing," he warned as he followed her back to her shelter.

She glared at Sawyer as she tried to coax Aaron from crying, "It's okay," she whispered.

"Like hell it is," Sawyer stated back.

"Remember me?" she questioned to the little baby, who gazed up at her silently, "I was the one who delivered you in the jungle."

"So you know you can trust her," Sawyer muttered back as he rolled his eyes. Aaron's lower lip began to quiver and he started to cry once again.

"Sawyer, you're scaring him," she gave him a loathing look as she held Aaron close to her once again, so he couldn't see Sawyer. Sawyer opened his mouth to set off a smart-alecky remark, but was interrupted by the sounds of a struggle and a thud someway down the beach.

"What was that?" Kate asked curiously as Aaron began to fall asleep against her, she cautiously walked over and peered out of the tent, noticing nothing different from her landscape view.

"It was probably Mohamed trying to pull Barbie into one of the tents, we're gonna get another storm," he stated obviously.

"No," Kate shook her head, "I don't think that was it, Shannon's still sitting and Sayid's not there."

"You wanna go investigate, don't ya?" Sawyer let out an exasperated sigh, "How come every time I sit down with you, I gotta get back up?"

"You have to get up every time you sit down anywhere, but we me it just happens a lot faster," she declared as she left the tent with Aaron, not even waiting for him to get up.

"Freckles, if you want me to come with you, you've at least gotta wait up for me," he commented as he jogged to catch up with her.

"Well we're not all smokers," she replied diligently, Sawyer glared at her, but with a well placed smile, she inveigled her way out of his coarse looks. "You think you're pretty cunning, don't you?" Sawyer questioned, but Kate had stopped walking, "Why you stoppin'?" Sawyer called back.

"Look," Kate gulped out as she pointed to Charlie and Claire's tent; blood lay dripping from the metal sides and splattered across the shining blue tarp. Claire lay face down in the sand, a pool of blood expanding from around her head. A large gash was cut in her sandy blonde hair, where a crimson river flowed freely.

On the other side of the tent, Sayid stood looking over Charlie; his throat cut by one of Locke's knives from side to side which caused the stipple effect on the tarp, blood tinged the tape letters on his fingers that read B-A-I-T.

"What the hell happened here?" Sawyer asked, revolted and disgusted by the carnage of the bodies of his fellow castaways.

"Charlie killed Claire," Sayid replied candidly. Sawyer stared at him a moment before looking back to Kate, who's eyes were dizzying as she fought to keep the fidgeting Aaron from looking at the slaughter.

"Who the hell killed Charlie then?" Sawyer questioned as he took a step closer to Kate.

"I did," Sayid answered vacantly. This drove Kate out of her reverie, her eyes bounced up to Sawyer's then to Sayid's. Both of them wondering why he would've brutally murdered Charlie so quickly.

"He killed Claire," Sayid continued after a few moments, "He had a knife and he wasn't sane anymore. He was a threat to me and everyone else in this camp if he would kill the one he loved the most."

"You should call Locke in," Kate suggested indifferently, still staring at the pools of dark blood being absorbed into the sand. She wondered that if Aaron actually had a chance to grow up on this island, if all the pure, virtuous beaches would be tarnished red.

"Yes I suppose he would take care of the bodies," he agreed remorsefully.

"Freckles, do I gotta pull you away from the mess again, or can you make it back to the tent yourself?" Sawyer queried harshly as he noticed her never taking her eyes off the blood.

"You're too over-protective," Kate told him blankly, "You're not supposed to be the hero," she added. Knowing he knew who rightfully belonged in that niche.

A certain longing sent his eyes aglow for a brief moment, and if Kate hadn't been staring at the bloodshed and mangled bodies that used to be Charlie and Claire, she wouldn't have missed it.

"Just go back to sleep," he told her callously, trying to cover the hurt she caused him. She looked like she was going to respond with some cutthroat remark but he interrupted her, "You're shackled with Rosemary's baby permanently now," he reminded her.

She looked down to the tiny boy sleeping in her arms, she'd completely forgotten about him. Perhaps if she made sure that Aaron was okay, if he didn't die from part of this disease, there would be at least a glimmer of hope. If she took care of him, perhaps it would be some sort of penance, a repayment for what she'd done by lying to Sayid.

She nodded gravely and turned away from the two men, dragging her feet through the sand therapeutically, closing her eyes and pretending that she didn't see it colored in the blood of her closest friends, that it didn't become syrupy between her toes.

She let out a small sigh of relief when she made it to her abode without having a nervous breakdown when she thought about the future, or how she was supposed to feed a baby who was still supposed to be breastfeeding.

Silently, she placed Aaron in his crib. He awoke only for a second, casting his beautiful azure eyes upon her. Giving her almost a smile of adoration, a gift for her upon his part, like he knew what was going on. For that brief second, Kate actually connected with someone on the island, for a purely good reason.

She smiled back and caressed his lightly haired head, as she tucked the blanket lightly around him as he fell into sleep once again. She stood leaning against his crib for a few moments just taking in the relief that he would be okay for one more night.

"Kate?" a voice asked from behind her. She recognized the tone of it and that appreciated relief was immediately flushed from her system. The voice, his voice, once a beacon of healing, now sounded like nails on a chalkboard, sending a chilling quake down her spine. "What happened here?" he questioned when she didn't acknowledge him.

She swallowed the acrid lump in her throat and gave one last gaze to the slumbering Aaron before she turned around to face him, her most beloved becoming her worst fear. With as much serenity as she could muster, she camouflaged her trepidation and with a shaky voice asked, "What are you doing here Jack?"

And the comments which will be answered finally (Because I'm not busy)

lostobsessivefreak
Lol you said you liked dark, how was this for you? Though maybe you shouldn't be reading it because you UNDERAGE! Lol but that doesn't stop you from writing NC-17. You rebel you. I'm gonna look over you chapter when I'm finished here, and then maybe get some sleep before Wonderland lol.

CrAzYhOrSeGiRl88
Thanks for all your help chum, lol and I can't wait for the next chapter because I get to start what I've been waiting for (squeeee) I'll give you a hint, it rhymes with bitchslap! MY DAY HAS COME! Okay I'm excited, you can tell, but I've been rehearing it, really, I watched Mortal Kombat over 5 times just to get the beating to perfection.

Octobersky
You think that was bad, you got no idea what I've got planned up my sleeve, this is what I like to call my "no strings attached' story. I can do whatever I want, how I want with who I want and when I want. Lol but not why I want. But anyways, it's only gonna get better from here on in. And I'll tell you no one is safe

Orlando-Crazy
Thanks

Rain1657
Lol I'm glad I surprised you, and you should know by now that writing is my puppet and I command it to dance for me! But really I totally got tired of fluff. It was always fluff, and I was starting to not enjoy it anymore, so I took a break to write this, and who knows, when it's done, maybe I'll be able to write my fluffy stories better, because I know what I can do on the other end of the spectrum.

Whirlwind-2005
Good question, you'll find the answer to it in the last chapter probably, if not the next one, it still might be fuzzy in the next one though. But definitely the last chapter will clear everything up.

Freckles-101
Yeah he was pretty feral (That's my new word I overuse it to death) anyways, he's back now and that can only spell one thing
Ethan: T-K-O
Or you know……Trouble, but I'll give you points for trying.

Alright you guys I'm officially off school but I have to learn to drive and I have to go to Wonderland (It's imperative) seriously some guy told me if I didn't go, he'd kill my dog
Ethan: and I meant it.
So I'll start to work on the next chapter on Sunday. And I'll aim to have it done by Thursday because the parental units won't be kind to me now that I have no job and am off school.